The school, in Glasgow's leafy west end, has been at the centre of debate from parents on both side of the argument. The petition calling for the consultation has gathered 1400 signatures

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By Mark Hendry

26th February 2018,1:05 pm

Updated: 26th February 2018,1:28 pm

THE FORMER Lord Provost of Glasgow says Scotland’s only all-girls state school should not consider letting boys in.

Liz Cameron has thrown her weight behind a petition to keep Notre Dame High exclusively for girls after a row erupted last week over plans to consider allowing boys into the 120-year-old comprehensive.

Notre Dame High, situated in Glasgow’s west end, will remain an all-girl school until a council consultation – which could rumble on into May – has concluded.

Some parents are unhappy that siblings who go to Notre Dame Primary together are being split up when the reach high school age – and also argue that the school is under-subscribed.

Ms Cameron, who is a former pupil of Notre Dame, believes the all-girls comp is the ideal place for girls of all backgrounds to be given the best chance of a good education and should remain unchanged.

She said: “There are a huge number of reasons to keep Notre Dame as it is. Attainment levels are going up and things like that but for me the big thing is uniqueness.

A petition has called for an open consultation to allow boys to attend NDHS

Ms Cameron pointed to a recent council meeting regarding the situation where two speakers, also former students, to show more examples of the success she attributed to Notre Dame High’s all-girl background.

And she denies any criticism lodged against the school that hints at discrimination against boys – claiming she wants every child to enjoy a good education.

She said: “The success of Notre Dame High was underpinned in a meeting last Monday with council members where two speakers were former pupils. One now works in an investment bank and the other is an engineer.

“Where you’ve got all girls and female role models like we had when we went, who taught us physics and chemistry, the whole idea that women can do this is very much running throughout Notre Dame girls.

“But it’s not about it being against boys. I really take umbrage at that. I’ve been in education all my life and I want every child to have a chance. Every child is special.

“Girls are flourishing in a unique atmosphere, is that a reason to stop that and try something else? In my mind, if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.

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“It’s not discrimination. Boys have a perfectly good school to go to in St Thomas Aquinas. I’m not sure I like the word discrimination. Even in 2018, 100 years after giving women suffrage, women still have hard deals.

“Notre Dame helps to push that glass ceiling. We still haven’t achieved equal pay, there’s a real hope to break that glass ceiling and if we can do that, it can only do everyone in society good.”

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